Naval Academy Removed Nearly 400 Books From Library, Navy Confirms

The titles have not been identified, but a Navy spokesperson said the books were removed to comply with executive orders.

An entrance to the U.S. Naval Academy campus in Annapolis, Md. Patrick Semansky/AP Photo

The Naval Academy in Maryland has removed hundreds of books from its library, the Navy confirmed on April 2.

“We can confirm the U.S. Naval Academy has removed nearly 400 books from their Nimitz Library collection in order to ensure compliance with all directives outlined in executive orders issued by the president,” a spokesperson for the Navy told The Epoch Times in an email.

“Nimitz Library houses roughly 590,000 print books, 322 databases, and over 5,000 print journals and magazines to support the academic inquiries and intellectual development of midshipmen. The Naval Academy’s mission is to develop midshipmen morally, mentally and physically in order to cultivate honorable leaders, create a culture of excellence, and prepare them for careers of service to our country.”

Both the Navy and the Naval Academy declined to identify any of the books that were removed.

The Navy did not name the orders from President Donald Trump to which it was referring. One January order barred federal funds from schools teaching diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) content, but covered only primary schools.

Another order said military DEI programs “undermine leadership, merit, and unit cohesion, thereby eroding lethality and force readiness” and that military institutions, including educational ones, were prohibited from promoting or inculcating DEI theories, including the idea that America’s founding documents are racist or sexist.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told officials after the orders were issued that DEI policies “are incompatible with the values of [the Department of Defense].”

The Pentagon declined to comment.

Hegseth visited the academy on Tuesday, shortly after meeting with Trump in the White House’s Oval Office.

Hegseth recounted what Trump communicated.

“He said to me, ‘I need you to restore the warfighting piece of the military. It’s gotten distracted by a lot of other things. Bring it back to basics’” Hegseth told midshipmen, according to the Pentagon.

Hegseth said in his speech that “our differences don’t make us strong; our shared mission does.” The focus, he said, was being ready and excellent.

The military has in recent months been removing DEI content, including records from the Department of Defense’s website.

There’s been some confusion about the DEI policy, with some content from the Pentagon’s site and social media platforms being archived even though it should not have been, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said previously.

“When content is either mistakenly removed or if it’s maliciously removed, we continue to work quickly to restore it,” he said in a video.